A small batch of BEIGNETS.

Welcome from Pinterest! If you’re looking for a small batch of authentic beignets, you’ve come to the right place! Be sure to scroll down and check out my other New Orleans inspired recipes!

I’m just going to say it: this is the best recipe that has ever come out of my kitchen. Sorry to be so demonstrative, but I’m still on a powdered sugar high. I bought a 7-pound bag at Costco last week.

I’m a beignet freak. They make me a bit emotionally unstable, as in, I must eat them all!

When you work around desserts and sugar constantly, you learn to be selective about how you rack up your calories. I can resist most desserts. I’ll have two bites and save the rest of my calories for wine, thanks.

But these beignets? I ate them mere minutes after their photo shoot was over.

If you don’t want to dive into that bowl, there might be something wrong with you. Sorry to break it to you this way. More powdered sugar for ya?

I love to fry. Are you are scared of it? Please, don’t be scared! If you avoid frying because of the splattering mess, use a deep pot. I posted a video of these beignets while they were frying, and you can tell, I use a very deep pot when frying. {video here}

Does the smell of fried food linger in your house? Light a candle afterwards. Do anything that allows you to tackle your fear of frying. Your taste buds will thank you.

A good beignet has a puff of air in the middle after frying. See it above? So PUFFY.

This is what deep-fried love looks like:

Ok, you’re all set to fry! Let me know if you have any questions as you venture down the road of homemade beignets.

In the same bowl you heated the water to 105° in, add the yeast and a pinch of sugar. Stir to dissolve. Let it sit and confirm the yeast is active---it will foam. If it does not foam, throw it out and start over.

Meanwhile, combine the shortening, sugar, milk, and egg white in a small cup. Whisk together well, then add the boiling water. Test the temperature of this mixture, and when it's between 105-110°, add it to the foamy yeast mixture. Stir well.

Add the flour to the bowl, and stir gently to combine. Cover with plastic wrap and let rest for 1 hour. You can make the dough ahead of time up to this point. I have kept dough for 3 days in the fridge before frying, and it's fine.

Heat the oil in a deep pot to 360°.

Meanwhile, divide the dough in half, and roll it out on a floured counter into a square about 6" wide. Use a pizza wheel to cut it into 5 or 6 squares. (see photo above for reference)

When the oil is at 360°, drop in 3 square of dough. Do not walk away. The first side fries for 1-2 minutes. When golden brown on one side, flip the squares using a fork and continue to fry. When that side is golden brown (about 1 minute more), remove from the oil onto a cooling rack lined with paper towels.

Roll out the other half of the dough, cut into squares, and fry all the squares.

After cooling for about 5 minutes, dunk the beignets into the powdered sugar. Serve with all the extra powdered sugar piled on top.

Comments

I LOVE BEIGNEEEETS!! I'm not much of a fryer, but beignets are the one thing I would willingly sack up and fry for. Seriously. I'm ready to go into an emotionally unstable sugar high for these gorgeous guys!

Umm..yes. I love beignets! The best ones I've ever had, typically, were in New Orleans at Cafe du Monde. I bit into them and my entire face got dusted with a thin layer of powdered sugar! Which was more than worth it.These look beautiful Christina!!! And now I have to check out those duck fat beignets, because well....WOH.

Gee whiz, I love you. I'm not sure if I love you more for posting these, or for using shortening and canola oil or dousing them in lots of sugar. I need these in my life and I just might be making them this weekend and pretending that I'm in New Orleans and am warm, enjoying Mardi Gras and NOT looking at another 6" of snow.

This is late but I was out of town when I noticed you on Twitter. Welcome to St Louis! I also moved just a couple of years ago from Atlanta, but I love this city so much more than I ever thought I would.
I've loved your blog for a while so it's funny that we're now in the same city! Also, these beignets look AMAZING. I'm going to New Orleans next weekend so I'll be eating a lot of them, so excited! And then I'll probably come back in withdrawal.
PS. If you want to try the best beignets with a salted caramel whipped cream, head to Cleveland-Heath! All their food is outstanding but those beignets practically melt in your mouth :)

Thanks so much, Amrita! We just committed to NOLA for Mardi Gras next year for sure. Things just crept up on us this year with the move in January. I hope you have a blast! Thansk for the Cleveland-Heath rec! I'm collecting STL food recs like crazy right now. :)

Wow! I've also heard about those beignets using duck fat and it's been on my mind, too! I also watched some special the other day and didn't realized until then that Cafe du Monde only has beignets on the menu when it comes to food. A good, warm beignet is such a beautiful thing - I may have to get over my reluctance to fry. These look amazing - I would only ask for a teeny bit of warm chocolate on the side to dunk a few in... : )

Hi Lisa,I strain my oil, and then save it for my next fry session. Every time you fry in a oil, the crust that results becomes more golden. This is why clean oil produces a light brown crust, and older oil produces a darker crust. This is also why chicken nuggets at fast food places are so dark, and when you make them yourself, they're lighter. That said, do not use oil that you fried fish in previously for beignets. I mark my used oil 'savory' or 'sweet.' Hope this helps :)

Your Beignets look marvelous. I always have to control myself when I eat them because I tend to inhale the powdered sugar into my lungs! Beignets fried in duck fat- Wow! If I'm not mistaken, Erika's grandmother is Mama Dip of Mama Dip's restaurant in Chapel Hill, NC. That family definitely knows how to do some good southern cookin!

Ok, I know I'm tardy to the party, but I have a question about beingets that needs answered. The boyfriend has had a crap week of working a lot of nights in a row, so I was going to make these for breakfast this weekend (as I'm pretty sure NOLA had a beinget shortage after we left) but what do you serve with them to make it brunch (besides more beingets)?

Hi! Thanks :)
I put the dough in the fridge before rolling out. I find that the time it takes to roll out the dough and preheat the oil is enough time for it to come to an acceptable temperature to fry. I hope this helps!

Thank you so much for this! I've been looking for a beignet recipe that makes just a few, and this was so easy. I've never even fried anything, and they turned out beautifully. They were delicious, and the two of us could only get through about half of the beignets - nice to have leftovers for later. To coat them with powdered sugar I threw them in a paper bag and shook it (after they'd drained but we're still hot).One note: I only let the dough proof for about two hours, and I think next time I'll at least do overnight or a day. They just weren't as tangy as the ones I've had in New Orleans, so a longer proofing time is probably better (we just couldn't wait). Thanks again!

I used this recipe for the first time about a month ago. They turned our beautiful an were gone in about 10 minutes.
Tonight I decided to use it again but big dissappointment. I tested the water to get the right temp, i followed the recipe to a T. To no avail an no rising. I don't understand what happened,what I did wrong. I did everything you said to do an I'm so upset,so are my neighbors. Everyone was looking forward to enjoying my beigets,they got NOTHING.
Thanks

Hi there! I am just about to make these and so excited about it! Just one question. I want to have them for breakfast tomorrow so I will leave the dough in the refrigerator overnight. And here is my doubt: you let it rise for 1 hour and then put it in the refrigerator? Or you make the dough and then it proofs in the refrigerator overnight?
Thank you!!

I had my first beignets on our New Orleans honeymoon in 1974! I swear that beignets are the food of the gods. We have made the pilgrimage many times and Cafe du Monde is always our last stop before calling it a night. I have sucked in and choked on powdered sugar more times than I care to admit! Seeing your posting for a small batch has empowered me to give it a try. I can't wait to try the other NOLA favorites here too. Thanks so much!

These sound amazing! Could you use butter in place of shortening? Also do you foresee any issues in issuing a cookie cutter instead of cutting squares? I'd like to make heart shaped ones for my husband for Valentine's Day

Thank you so much for this wonderful little recipe! Never had the delightful treats before and decided to give them a try! Recipe was easy to follow and the perfect size to share with a few friends! My husband and I loved them!

[…] all, despite what that pile of snow outside my door is telling me). When I saw Christina over at Dessert For Two posting beignets, I knew I had to give it a go, just to see if vegan beignets were even […]

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